Departmental Conferences

Mark Hoban: To ask the Prime Minister if he will list the conferences hosted by 10 Downing street in each of the last two years; and what the cost was of each conference.

Gordon Brown: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Cleethorpes (Shona McIsaac) on 25 July 2007,  Official Report, column 1107-1110W.
	Information on Official and Charity receptions for 2007-08 will be published in the usual way following the end of the financial year.

Departmental Film

Francis Maude: To ask the Prime Minister how many films have been produced in  (a) video,  (b) DVD and  (c) other digital formats by Downing Street in the last 24 months; and what the title was of each film.

Gordon Brown: Films produced by my Office are available on the Downing Street YouTube channel:
	http://www.youtube.com/DowningSt.

Departmental Manpower

Mark Hoban: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 1 May 2008,  Official Report, column 624W, on departmental manpower, 
	(1)  if he will break down by pay grade members of staff listed;
	(2)  how many people are employed in the  (a) speech writing unit,  (b) international unit and  (c) direct communications unit in No. 10 Downing Street.

Gordon Brown: I have nothing further to add to the answer I gave the hon. Member on 1 May 2008,  Official Report, column 624W.

Departmental Security

Francis Maude: To ask the Prime Minister how many Downing Street identity cards or departmental passes have been reported lost or stolen in the last 24 months.

Gordon Brown: It has been the practice of successive Governments not to comment on security matters.

Departmental Standards

Francis Maude: To ask the Prime Minister whether Downing Street has a dress code for staff.

Gordon Brown: Staff are expected to abide by the Civil Service Code; it does not include a formal dress code.

Olympic Games

Don Foster: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  how many officials from 10 Downing Street plan to attend the Beijing Olympic Games; to what purpose in each case; and what estimate he has made of the cost;
	(2)  whether he will attend the Beijing Olympic Games.

Gordon Brown: I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave at my monthly press conference on 1 April 2008. A transcript is available on the No. 10 website:
	http://www.number-10.gov.uk/output/Page15167.asp
	and a copy has been placed in the Library of the House.
	Since 1999, the Government have published an annual list of all visits overseas undertaken by Cabinet Ministers costing £500 or more during each financial year. Copies of these lists are available in the Library of the House. Information on the number of officials accompanying Ministers on overseas visits is included in the list. All Ministers' travel arrangements are in accordance with the arrangements for official travel set out in chapter 10 of the "Ministerial Code", and the accompanying guidance document, "Travel by Ministers". Information for 2008-09 will be published in the normal way.

Republic of Ireland: Treaty of Lisbon

Nigel Evans: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  what discussions he has had with his Irish counterpart following the result of the referendum in the Republic of Ireland on the Lisbon Treaty; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what plans he has to ratify the Treaty of Lisbon;
	(3)  what discussions he has had with  (a) the President of the European Commission and  (b) other members of the European Commission following the result of the referendum in the Republic of Ireland on the Lisbon Treaty; and if he will make a statement.

Gordon Brown: I refer the hon. Member to the statement made by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (David Miliband) on 16 June 2008,  Official Report, column 704, and my answers at Prime Minister's questions today.

Common Agricultural Policy

Mark Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with  (a) EU partners and  (b) the European Commission on the CAP reform health check announced on 20 May 2008.

Jim Murphy: holding answer 5 June 2008
	My right hon. Friends the Prime Minister, the Foreign Secretary and the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and I, as well as officials at the UK Representation in Brussels and across our European network, are in regular contact with EU partners and the European Commission on a full range of issues.
	The Government's position on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) health check is well established. We welcomed the publication of the health check proposals as a further step in the process of reforming the CAP. We are seeking an ambitious outcome that further cuts the trade distorting nature of the CAP, which has contributed to high food prices. We want reduced regulatory burdens to give farmers greater control over their business decisions and redirect more CAP spending away from direct farm payments towards delivery of targeted public benefits.

Departmental Video Conferencing

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many facilities for videoconferencing his Department has; how much it cost to install them; how much it cost to  (a) run and  (b) maintain them in the last year for which figures are available; how many times the facilities have been used (i) since installation and (ii) in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

David Miliband: There are approximately 160 video conference sets deployed in Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) premises in the UK and around the world, with a further 18 planned for installation during the next few months. The most recent project delivered 76 sets at a total cost of £2.13 million, or approximately £28,000 each, including purchase, freight and installation.
	The sets are connected to the FCO's own telecommunications system and incur no specific additional transmission charge. Hitherto, the cost of maintenance has been subsumed within the FCO's annual telephony support charge and is not separately identifiable. The support arrangement for the future is being negotiated at the moment. Until this is agreed a precise figure cannot be given, but is expected to be less than 10 per cent. of the initial cost per annum.
	Prior to September 2007, the software necessary to monitor usage was not available to the FCO. The figures recorded since then, for the recently installed sets, are given in the following table:
	
		
			  Month  Total hours of usage over network 
			 September 2007 268 
			 October 2007 368 
			 November 2007 491 
			 December 2007 282 
			 January 2008 491 
			 February 2008 545 
			 March 2008 405 
			 April 2008 630 
			   
			 Total 3,480

Iraq: Peacekeeping Operations

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking to ensure that Government contracts with British and Iraqi contractors comply with British and international law and are publicly accountable and transparent; and if he will make a statement.

Meg Munn: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is not able to comment on contracts with British and Iraqi contractors held by other Government Departments.
	All FCO contracts are subject to a rigorous selection process so that we obtain best value for money. Any company engaged by the FCO needs to pass through a stringent and transparent procurement process in line with public procurement guidelines and best practice. The same rigorous process is followed in the contract management and performance monitoring of these contracts, through a combination of local in-country management and UK based support.
	Contracts awarded for FCO estate works projects in Iraq are based on standard Government forms of contract which are subject to English law and jurisdiction. In general, these act in harmony with international laws to produce a code of conduct which binds contractors, both explicitly and implicitly, to the code during execution of the contract agreements.

Nuclear Disarmament

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 9 June 2008,  Official Report, column 3W, on nuclear disarmament, if he will place in the Library a copy of the research undertaken on verification of multilateral nuclear disarmament by AWE in partnership with Norway and Vertic; and what the cost was of the contract with the International Institute for Strategic Studies to which reference is made.

Meg Munn: The Atomic Weapons Establishment reported to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Preparatory Committee in May on the progress of their work to date and the future direction of their studies. I will place a copy of this report in the Library of the House.
	The Foreign and Commonwealth Office provided £10,000 last financial year to support the study by the International Institute for Strategic Studies through a technical workshop. We are also prepared to offer funding for a launch event and discussion in Geneva in September.

Pakistan: Blasphemy

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has made recent representations to the government of Pakistan on the use of blasphemy laws against religious minorities; and if he will make a statement.

Meg Munn: At the UN Human Rights Council in May, the UK asked about measures to safeguard the rights of minorities in Pakistan. In reply, the Pakistani delegation reaffirmed their commitment to introduce checks to prevent abuse of the blasphemy law.

Republic of Ireland: Treaty of Lisbon

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his Irish counterpart since the result of the referendum in the Republic of Ireland on the Lisbon Treaty; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Murphy: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has been in close contact with his Irish counterpart since the result of the referendum and spoke with him in the margins of the EU General Affairs and External Relations Council in Luxembourg on 16 June.

Timor-Leste: Crimes Against Humanity

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will hold discussions with the Indonesian government to ascertain the status of Colonel Burhanddhin Siagian following his indictment on 3 February 2003 by the United Nations Special Panel for Serious Crimes in Dili, East Timor, for crimes against humanity.

Meg Munn: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has no plans to hold discussions with the Indonesian Government on the status of Indonesian Colonel Burhanuddin Siagian. We believe that it is for the Indonesian and East Timorese Governments to pursue the indictment by the UN Special Panel for Serious Crimes.
	The UK has consistently expressed concern to both the Indonesian and East Timorese Governments about impunity for those responsible for human rights abuses in East Timor. These issues are pursued through their bilateral Commission for Truth and Friendship. We have encouraged both Governments to make the Commission for Truth and Friendship a process that enjoys the confidence of the victims and the international community.

Uzbekistan: Forced Labour

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what report his Department has received of forced labour in Uzbekistan; and what representations his Department has made to Uzbek authorities on this matter.

Jim Murphy: The UK remains seriously concerned about allegations of the use of forced child labour in the cotton sector in Uzbekistan. The UK has raised its concerns through the EU and has discussed the issue with the Uzbek government. Most recently, Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials raised concerns with the Uzbek government during a visit to Tashkent in May 2008. This followed a meeting earlier this year between our ambassador in Tashkent and the Uzbek Minister for Foreign Economic Relations, which focused on cotton and child labour issues. We have also raised child labour and cotton issues with the local UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) representative. The UK supports calls from UNICEF and the International Labour Organisation for a "participatory assessment" involving the International Cotton Association and a number of embassies in Tashkent, which would be open to the media.

Biofuels

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 21 May 2008,  Official Report, column 343W on biofuels, how much of the £720,000 spent on research and development into biogas production has been spent in Wales.

Phil Woolas: DEFRA only provides grants for projects in England. Any funding spent in Wales is a devolved matter and for the Welsh Assembly government to decide upon.
	All of the waste and resources action programme's (WRAP) research and development into biogas production has been based in England. However, the findings of WRAP'S research are pertinent to the whole of the UK and have been disseminated in Wales.
	WRAP Wales are supporting operational anaerobic digestion (AD) projects in Wales (through Welsh Assembly government-funded capital competitions), and working closely with the AD Centre of Excellence at the university of Glamorgan, to ensure that emerging best practice is incorporated.

Climate Change Bill

Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discount rate was used  (a) to calculate net present value of costs and benefits of the Climate Change Bill in the final impact assessment and  (b) to calculate costs and benefits of mitigating climate change in the Economics of Climate Change by Professor Stern.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 17 June 2008
	The Climate Change Bill Final Impact Assessment complied with the Better Regulation Executive's guidance on development of Impact Assessments. This states that HM Treasury's discount rates should be applied, as set out in their publication "Appraisal and Evaluation in Central Government—The Green Book". The Green Book sets out a declining discounting schedule which discounts costs and benefits for the first 30 years at 3.5 per cent. per annum, and costs and benefits for years 30 to 60 at 3 per cent. per annum.
	Professor Stern's Review did not apply a single rate of discount, but rather calculated the discount rate endogenously within the analysis, varying according to the scenario.

Bus Services: Greater London

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will discuss with Transport for London the absence of bus stops along the western side of Parliament Street near Whitehall and ask for this situation to be rectified.

Rosie Winterton: The temporary absence of bus stops on the western side of Parliament street has been due to extensive street works associated with the Whitehall Streetscape Improvement project. These are being carried out by Westminster city council on behalf of the Cabinet Office and other Government Departments in the area. The project involves major improvements to the highway including the incorporation of enhanced security measures.
	Westminster city council has consulted Transport for London and London Buses at all stages of the project. Work on the western side of Parliament street is now almost complete and buses are once again stopping in the area.

Great Western Trains

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for what reason her Department specified service level reductions in respect of the present period for the franchise operated by First Great Western.

Tom Harris: holding answer 13 June 2008
	The specification for the Greater Western Franchise was described in a stakeholder briefing document published by the Strategic Rail Authority in June 2005. Its primary objectives were to improve operational performance, and reduce the subsidy demand on taxpayers, by matching service provision more closely to demand.

Great Western Trains: Rolling Stock

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many carriages will be withdrawn from west of Exeter when South-West Trains cease operating west of Exeter; on how many services; and what steps she is taking to ensure that sufficient replacement rolling stock will be available to First Great Western.

Tom Harris: Currently, South West Trains run two trains in each direction between Exeter and Paignton, and two between Exeter and Plymouth, operating as extensions of the Waterloo-Exeter service. Each normally consists of three coaches. These extensions will cease in December 2009, when the Waterloo-Exeter train frequency is due to be increased to hourly. The Department for Transport is discussing the implications of these changes with relevant train operators and Passenger Focus, and will seek mitigation measures as necessary.

Heathrow Airport

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 20 March 2008,  Official Report, column 1384W, on Heathrow airport, what tasks were included in the wide range of technical work in which BAA participated.

Jim Fitzpatrick: As set out in the Heathrow consultation document, BAA's involvement included developing the technical basis for mixed mode operations, refining the proposals for a third runway (including supporting passenger terminal facilities and connectivity), advising on forecasting and fleet mix assumptions and leading on the surface access work. Throughout the project, BAA's expertise as the airport operator assisted in ensuring that technical issues were properly understood and accurately represented.

Road Traffic Offences: Fixed Penalties

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which local authorities have been found to be issuing invalid penalty charge notices under section 66(3) of the Road Traffic Act 1991  (a) in London and  (b) outside London since the September 2006 decision of the High Court in the case of R v Parking Adjudicator ex parte Brent Council; by what means refunds of invalid penalty charges have been issued; and what steps her Department has taken to advise the public that refunds of invalid penalty charges may be made.

Rosie Winterton: The Department has no information about the authorities that are said to have issued penalty charge notices after being advised by the Chief Parking Adjudicators of the implications of the judgment in R  v. The Parking Adjudicator ex parte Barnet London Council. If a local authority considered it appropriate to refund a penalty charge that had been paid it would need to contact the keeper using the details from their payment record or, if that was not available, from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency. Local authorities know that they have the power to cancel a penalty charge notice at any stage in the process and to refund a penalty charge that has been paid if they consider it appropriate.

Community Relations

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much has been  (a) allocated to and  (b) received by each local authority under the Preventing Violent Extremism programme.

Parmjit Dhanda: In 2007-08 the Government made the £6 million Preventing Violent Extremism Pathfinder Fund available to around 70 local authorities. A table showing funding broken down by region has been deposited in the Library of the House.
	In October 2007 the Communities Secretary announced £45 million over three years for local partnerships to build resilience to violent extremism. A table setting out funding for this financial year and indicative funding for the following two years for local authorities around England has been deposited in the Library of the House.
	The first instalment of funding for the financial year 2008-09 was paid in March 2008 through the Area Based Grant (ABG), which is funded to local authorities in monthly instalments. Local authorities have therefore received three monthly instalments of the grant to date.

Community Relations

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which faith groups she has advised local authorities to target through the Preventing Violent Extremism programme.

Parmjit Dhanda: As described in the recently launched Prevent Strategy, it is cohesive, empowered and resilient communities which are best equipped to confront violent extremists. There is a role for all communities in standing together to challenge violent extremism and to support those who may be targeted by violent extremists.
	As set out in the accompanying guidance, local partners should take a "whole community" approach to ensure that this work does not inadvertently lead to pressure on vulnerable sections of the community. All communities should help to support those individuals, institutions and communities that are most vulnerable—making the most of the energy and experience of a range of groups working in faith and non-faith communities. Given the nature of the current security threat we expect local partners to work particularly closely with their Muslim communities.

Economic and Monetary Union

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on what date the euro changeover plan of  (a) her Department and  (b) each of its agencies was last updated; and if she will place in the Library a copy of the most recent version of each.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Communities and Local Government's Euro Changeover Plan was last updated in June 2007. A list of Communities and Local Government agencies and NDPB's that produced a Euro Changeover Plan along with the dates these were produced is provided as follows:
	
		
			   Agency/NDPB 
			  (a) Executive agencies  
			 September 2004 Government Offices/Regional Co-ordination Unit 
			 September 2004 Planning Inspectorate 
			 September 2004 The Fire Service College 
			 June 2004 QEII Conference Centre 
			   
			  (b) Non-departmental public bodies  
			 August 2004 Valuation Tribunal Service 
			 August 2004 English Partnership 
			 September 2004 Housing Corporation 
			 June 2004 Audit Commission 
			 September 2004 The Standards Board for England 
			 September 2004 Ordnance Survey 
		
	
	The Communities and Local Government Euro Changeover Plan was placed in the House of Commons Library in February 2006.
	There are no plans at present to place a copy of Communities and Local Government Euro Changeover Plan 2007 or those of its agencies and NDPB's in the Library.

Fire Services: Fuels

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what contingency plans are in place to ensure the provision of fuel for fire service vehicles during periods of fuel shortages.

Parmjit Dhanda: Under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, the Fire and Rescue Service is required to plan for contingencies, and this includes planning for dealing with interruptions in fuel supplies. Typically they do this by maintaining their own stores of diesel, sufficient to see them through an extended period of disruption. As a member of the Local Resilience Forum they also work with other local emergency responders to co-ordinate their planning against such contingencies.

Homelessness

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many households were classed as homeless in each of the last three years, broken down by region.

Iain Wright: Information about English local authorities' actions under the homelessness legislation is collected quarterly at local authority level.
	Information collected includes the number of households accepted by local housing authorities as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need, and therefore owed a main homelessness duty (to secure that suitable accommodation is available). If a settled home is not immediately available, the authority must secure temporary accommodation until a settled home becomes available.
	Since 1998, information has also been collected on the number of people who sleep rough—that is, those who are literally roofless on a single night.
	National and regional data on acceptances and temporary accommodation are published in our quarterly statistical release on Statutory Homelessness. This is published on our website and placed in the Library of the House each quarter. The latest release was published on 12 June 2008, and provides national and regional acceptance figures in Table 3, and temporary accommodation figures in Table 7, both back to 1997:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/xls/840324.xls
	Rough sleeping figures are also published on our website, back to 1997:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/xls/152200.xls
	A set of more detailed homelessness tables have been deposited in the Library of the House which gives a summary of rough sleeper estimates by Government office region.

North West

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what funding has been allocated by her Department, its agencies and non-departmental bodies to  (a) Lancashire and  (b) North West England in each year since 1997; and for what purpose the funds were allocated in each case.

Parmjit Dhanda: holding answer 12 June 2008
	Information on funding provided by the Department to the Lancashire area as a whole is not available other than at disproportionate cost. The main elements of funding provided by Communities and Local Government and its predecessor departments to Lancashire county council since 2002-03 are listed in the following table, (figures in £ millions). Information for earlier years is not readily available.
	
		
			   2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Revenue support grant(1) 347.7 406.9 445.4 430.4 36.0 33.4 33.3 
			 National non-domestic rates 303.3 303.0 287.2 349.1 186.7 199.1 239.1 
			 Housing market renewal fund(2) — 6.6 22.8 43.2 46.0 48.8 52.0 
			 Local area agreements/area based grant(3) — — — — — 25.6 52.3 
			 Supporting people(4) 0.7 31.5 31.7 29.9 29.4 29.7 29.7 
			 Public service agreement performance fund — 1.9 0.1 — 7.9 7.4 — 
			 (1) Prior to 2006-07 support for schools was included in formula grant; from 2006-07 onwards support for schools has been provided via dedicated schools grant which is paid through the Department for Schools and Families and is not shown here. (2) Funding paid to Lancashire county council as accountable body for the East Lancashire housing market renewal pathfinder. The amount shown against 2003-04 was a payment covering 2002-03 and 2003-04. (3) Payments were made via local area agreements in 2007-08 and area based grant in 2008-09. (4) The Supporting People programme went live in April 2003. Prior to this date the Government contributed towards administration costs of establishing the programme. 
		
	
	There were also a number of smaller payments made, amounting to no more than £3 million in total in any one year.
	In addition, English Partnerships, an NDPB sponsored by Communities and Local Government, provided funding of £0.4 million to Lancashire county council in 2005-06 in respect of Whittingham hospital. Amounts paid by English Partnerships in other years were negligible.
	Information on public expenditure by region is published in "Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses 2008 (HC 489)."

Office for National Statistics: Finance

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 11 June 2008, on the Migration Impacts Plan, whether the £12 million programme led by the Office for National Statistics to improve population and migration data entails additional monies and new activities or whether it is part of the Office for National Statistics' ongoing Improving Migration and Population Statistics Project.

Parmjit Dhanda: The £12 million funding announced over a three-year period comprises additional resources that the Office for National Statistics has itself committed, that are on top of the resources it was already planning to spend on an ongoing basis to improve its population and migration statistics, and new contributions from Government Departments. The programme includes new activities, as well as some extensions to existing work.

Regional Spatial Strategies: Greenbelt

Bob Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what changes to green belt designation the  (a) draft South East Regional Spatial Strategy and  (b) inspector's report proposes; and in which locations in the South East would designated green belt be reviewed or removed.

Parmjit Dhanda: The draft Regional Spatial Strategy for the South East made no recommendations for a review of the green belt. The Independent Panel Report, published in August 2007, made recommendations regarding a selective review of Greenbelt boundaries in;
	(i.) The metropolitan green belt to the North East of Guildford, and possibly to the South of Woking and
	(ii). In the Oxford green belt to the South of the city.
	It also recommended boundary review in the area of the former DERA site at Chertsey and smaller scale local reviews in other locations, including around Redhill-Reigate.
	The Secretary of State is currently considering the recommendations of the Panel Report.

Somerset County Council: Manpower

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the workforce of Somerset County Council was in each of the last five years.

Parmjit Dhanda: The full-time equivalent staff numbers as at March each financial year are:
	
		
			   Staff numbers 
			 2003-04 11,719 
			 2004-05 11,956 
			 2005-06 12,377 
			 2006-07 (1)13,303 
			 2007-08 (1)13,293 
			 (1 )Includes all adult learning tutors.

Travelling People: Caravan Sites

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the area of land  (a) in total and  (b) per Traveller which needs to be provided for Travellers in (i) England, (ii) the South West, (iii) Devon and (iv) the National Parks.

Iain Wright: Communities and Local Government published a good practice guide on designing Gypsy and Traveller sites on 15 May which recognises that there is no one size fits all measurement for pitches on which Gypsy and Traveller families occupying caravans on public sites live. However, in "Common Ground: Equality, good race relations and sites for Gypsies and Travellers" the Commission for Racial Equality estimated that less than one square mile of land was needed to provide accommodation for Gypsy and Traveller caravans on unauthorised sites in the whole of England.

Borders: Personal Records

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what total saving the e-borders programme is expected to generate for the public purse.

Liam Byrne: e-Borders is an evolutionary system of intelligent passenger management that will improve the security, efficiency and effectiveness of the UK's borders. Amongst other benefits, it will allow the border agencies to:
	Identify potential threats to public security and take the necessary action;
	Increase our efficiency in moving people through our borders, and allow us to manage the exponential growth in passenger numbers;
	Detain people immediately on identification at the border, increasing operational effectiveness and potentially reducing operational costs in doing so.
	The use of e-Borders (over existing systems) is expected to generate projected savings for the Government of approximately £692 million over 25 years.
	The financial costs of implementing e-Borders may outweigh the financial benefits; however e-Borders is about more than financial gains.

Borders: Personal Records

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the projected total cost is of the e-borders programme.

Liam Byrne: The current projected total cost of the e-Borders programme is £1.2 billion.
	The projected costs of £1.2 billion include Semaphore and IRIS while they were pilot projects.
	This figure also includes both capital and revenue forecast to the end of the contract, and actual costs from the start of the programme in 2004 up to the end of 2007-08.

British Nationality: Assessments

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department who is responsible for determining the questions asked as part of the Life in UK Test; and whether she plans to endorse particular publications as recommended revision materials for those taking the Test.

Liam Byrne: Questions asked in the Life in the UK test were drawn up by experts in computer-based assessment from Ufi (the organisation that holds the current contract for providing the testing service) and representatives from the Advisory Board for Naturalisation and Integration. The current database of test questions was approved by Ministers.
	Test questions are based on the official handbook "Life in the UK: A Journey to Citizenship" which contains everything applicants need to know in order to take the test. This is the only publication we endorse.

Communications Directorate

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the function is of her Department's  (a) Stakeholder Strategy Unit and  (b) Strategy and Insight Unit within the Communications Directorate; and how many staff work in each.

Liam Byrne: The function of the Stakeholder Strategy Unit is to improve the way the Home Office works with and listens to its stakeholders, supporting Ministers, the Home Office Board and business units on all aspects of partnership working, seven staff work in the unit.
	The Strategy and Insight Unit lead in the development of the central Home Office communications strategy, acting as the central hub for communication planning research, audience insight and campaign evaluation. They provide strategic communications planning advice to teams embedded within delivery groups/agencies and the Communication Directorate, five staff work in the unit.

Departmental Transport

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when each of her Department's and its agencies' green transport plans were introduced; and if she will place in the Library a copy of each such plan.

Liam Byrne: The Home Office and its Agencies do not have a corporate Green Travel Plan. The Home Office is working towards the Government target of reducing its carbon emissions from road vehicles by 15 per cent. by 2010-11.
	In some cases individual buildings/sites have a travel plan tailored to that specific location. At the new Home Office building, Vulcan House in Sheffield a green transport plan was produced for staff as part of meeting the city council planning requirements for the new UKBA buildings there. The travel plan was submitted to the planners in January 2008 and covers approximately 1,800 staff.

Human Trafficking

Mohammad Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what mechanisms exist for  (a) joint working and  (b) liaison between the Serious Organised Crime Agency and the Scottish Drug Enforcement Agency on matters relating to human trafficking.

Vernon Coaker: There is close formal and informal liaison between SOCA and the SCDEA, who work together to tackle all forms of serious organised crime, including human trafficking.
	SOCA and the SCDEA are members of the Scottish Government-led Serious Organised Crime Taskforce and attend the ACPOS Crime Business Area meetings. Both agencies participate in the Scottish Tasking and Co-ordination (STC) regime.
	The Scottish Strategic Tasking and Co-ordination (SSTC) group commissions the Scottish Strategic Assessment and that sets the priorities for operational activity aimed at the arrest or disruption of serious organised criminals—including those who commit organised immigration crime. The Tactical Tasking and Co-ordination group is mandated to seek joint operational outcomes against those priorities and both agencies are members of that group.

Child Poverty Unit

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many times the Joint Child Poverty Unit has met.

Stephen Timms: Members of the Unit work closely together day to day, whether physically side by side or through frequent e-mail and phone contact. As well as attending ministerial meetings, they have held numerous meetings with external stakeholders, and seminars on tackling child poverty (some jointly hosted with lobby organisations or think tanks) for local authorities and others. They have also hosted cross-Whitehall Stakeholder Group meetings, and attended Four Countries meetings.

Child Poverty Unit: Manpower

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people work full-time for the Joint Child Poverty Unit.

Stephen Timms: The Child Poverty Unit currently comprises 19 staff, 18 of whom are full-time.

Fairtrade Initiative

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 20 February 2008,  Official Report, column 749W, on the Fairtrade initiative, 
	(1)  what Fairtrade products are  (a) available for purchase at his Department's staff catering facilities and  (b) offered at official departmental meetings and engagements;
	(2)  what the value was of Fairtrade products purchased at his Department's staff catering facilities in each of the last three financial years; and what proportion of revenue this represented.

Anne McGuire: In line with Government policy, the Department is committed to fairtrade and ethical supply routes.
	The Department's facilities management partner, Land Securities Trillium (LST) provides in house catering services where premises allow. Ethical procurement practices are a key factor in the contract.
	Where practicable, LST purchases sustainable produce for sale on departmental premises. LST is actively working with the Fairtrade Foundation to develop its fairtrade product offer and support the marketing of fairtrade products.
	The following fairtrade products are generally available for purchase at the Department's staff catering facilities:
	Orange juice
	Tea
	Coffee
	Biscuits
	Chocolate
	Flapjacks
	Cereal bars
	Fairtrade tea and coffee is standard for official receptions and meetings.
	The total value and proportion of revenue this represents, in respect of fairtrade products purchased at the Department's staff catering facilities for each of the last three financial years is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Period covered  (April to March)  Total value of fairtrade product sales (£)  Proportion of revenue (Percentage) 
			 2005-06 200,500.00 2.3 
			 2006-07 366,102.00 4.4 
			 2007-08 650,858.75 8.8

Harrington Scheme

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what arrangements his Department has made for the availability of funding to the Harrington Scheme in Hornsey and Wood Green constituency following the transfer of the relevant budget to local authority control; and if he will make a statement.

Kevin Brennan: I have been asked to reply.
	The Department's White Paper "Raising Expectations: Enabling the System to Deliver" laid out plans for transfer of funding for learning for 16 to 19-year-olds from the Learning and Skills Council to local authorities from September 2010.
	As with the current system, under the new arrangement providers such as the Harrington scheme would continue to receive funding for young people to attend their provision whether or not they are resident in the local authority area where the provision is based.

Social Security Benefits: Overpayments

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pension, 
	(1)  how much benefit overpayment resulting from  (a) customer and  (b) official error there has been in each year since 1997; what proportion of such payments related to 9i) income support, (ii) jobseeker's allowance, (iii) income support and jobseeker's allowance combined, (iv) pension credit and (v) housing benefit in each year; and what proportion of total payments of each benefit such overpayments represented in each year;
	(2)  how much overpaid benefit was subsequently recovered in each year since 1997, broken down by benefit.

James Plaskitt: The information is only available in the requested format for those benefits administered by the Department for Work and Pensions. Housing Benefit is administered by local authorities and is not available in the same format.
	The information is only available from 2001, and the data is rounded to the nearest £1 million where appropriate.
	Overpayments in category (iii) above, Income support and Jobseeker's Allowance combined, are not recorded as a separate entity and data relating to those overpayments will be included in the benefit specific data.
	Prior to April 2006, not all overpayments arising due to official error were formally calculated and recorded. Under an agreement with HM Treasury, known as Easements, these, along with small value overpayments not considered cost effective to pursue, were recorded separately on the basis of estimated values. The value recorded in the easements initiative in shown for each year—although this is not broken down by benefit.
	Prior to 2005-06 overpayments identified by the Recovery from Estates Unit were recorded separately. (The unit is responsible for the recovery of overpaid means tested benefits identified after death following check of probate records.) Unfortunately, these cannot be broken down by benefit.
	Otherwise, the data supplied is based on actual values of official error and customer error detected and recorded by the Department.
	The Department also publishes estimates of overpayments in the Resource Account and in National Statistics publications.
	Copies of two recent such reports: Fraud and Error in the Benefit System from April 2006 to March 2007, and Fraud and Error in the Benefit System from October 2006 to September 2007 have been placed in the House of Commons Library. These are based on detailed examination of a random sample of benefit claims and are an estimate of all error, whether it was detected by normal departmental processes or not. The differences in definition mean that the two sets of figures are not comparable.
	
		
			  2001-02 
			   Customer Error  Official Error  
			   Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  All overpayments as  percentage  of total each benefit paid 
			 IS 190 64 1.3 6 23 0.04 1.4 
			 JSA(C) 0.7 0.24 0.15 0.01 0.04 0.002 0.15 
			 JSA(IB) 22 7 1 0.3 1 0.012 1 
			 Other benefits 83 28 0.1 19 75 0.024 0.13 
			 Total 296 — — (1)25 — — — 
			  Note: Amounts not captured: (1)Estimated amount recorded in easements; £96 million Recorded by the Recoveries from Estates team; £17 million. Total overpayments recorded; £434 million. 
		
	
	
		
			  2002-03 
			   Customer Error  Official Error  
			   Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  All overpayments as  percentage  of total each benefit paid 
			 IS 175 64 1.2 5 26 0.03 1.3 
			 JSA(C) 0.8 0.3 0.15 0.017 0.1 0.003 0.15 
			 JSA(IB) 22 8 1 0.25 1 0.01 1 
			 Other benefits 78 28 0.09 14 73 0.01 0.11 
			 Total 275   (1)19
			  Note: Amounts not captured: (1)( )Estimated amount recorded in easements; £105 million. Recorded by the Recoveries from Estates team; £19 million. Total overpayments recorded; £418 million. 
		
	
	
		
			  2003-04 
			   Customer Error  Official Error  
			   Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  All overpayments as  percentage  of total each benefit paid 
			 IS 153 63 1.5 3 16 0.03 1.5 
			 JSA(C) 0.7 0.3 0.14 0.019 0.09 0.003 0.14 
			 JSA(IB) 22 9 1 0.2 0.79 0.008 1 
			 PC 0.14 0.06 0.002 0.2 1 0.004 0.007 
			 Other benefits 69 28 0.09 18 82 0.02 0.11 
			 Total 245 — — (1)21 — — — 
			  Note: Amounts not captured: (1) Estimated amount recorded in easements; £78 million. Recorded by the Recoveries from Estates team; £19 million. Total overpayments recorded; £363 million. 
		
	
	
		
			  2004-05 
			   Customer Error  Official Error  
			   Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  All overpayments as  percentage  of total each benefit paid 
			 IS 162 62 1.6 2 5 0.01 1.6 
			 JSA(C) 0.5 0.2 0.1 0.01 0.03 0.002 0.12 
			 JSA(IB) 26 10 1 0.11 0.35 0.006 1 
			 PC 2 0.9 0.03 3 10 0.05 0.09 
			 Other benefits 70 27 0.08 27 84 0.001 0.12 
			 Total 260 — — (1)32 — — — 
			  Note: Amounts not captured: (1) Estimated amount recorded in easements; £96 million. Recorded by the Recoveries from Estates team; £20 million. Total overpayments recorded: £4408. 
		
	
	
		
			  2005-06 
			   Customer Error  Official Error  
			   Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  All overpayments as  percentage  of total each benefit paid 
			 IS 190 67 2.1 9 7 0.09 2.2 
			 JSA(C) 0.8 0.3 0.2 0.01 0.01 0.002 0.17 
			 JSA(IB) 23 8 1.3 0.25 0.2 0.01 1.3 
			 PC 6 2 0.08 30 23 0.46 0.55 
			 Other benefits 62 22 0.07 90 70 0.06 0.18 
			 Total 282 — — (1)129 — — — 
			  Note: Amounts not captured: Estimated amount recorded in easements: £98 million. Total overpayments recorded: £509 million. 
		
	
	
		
			  200 6-07 
			   Customer Error  Official Error  
			   Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  All overpayments as  percentage  of total each benefit paid 
			 IS 273 59 3 51 26 0.6 3.7 
			 JSA(C) 2 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.2 0.08 0.5 
			 JSA(IB) 27 6 1.4 3 1 0.15 1.5 
			 PC 60 13 0.9 31 16 0.5 1.1 
			 Other benefits 101 22 0.1 129 54 0.14 0.27 
			 Total 463 — — 214 — — — 
			  Note: Total overpayments recorded: £677 million. 
		
	
	
		
			  200 07-08 
			   Customer Error  Official Error  
			   Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  Value of overpayments  ( £  million )  Percentage  of total overpaid  Percentage  of total of each benefit paid  All overpayments as  percentage  of total each benefit paid 
			 IS 243 63 2.8 67 31 0.8 3.6 
			 JSA(C) 2 0.5 0.48 1 0.47 0.24 0.73 
			 JSA(IB) 24 6 1 6 3 0.33 1.7 
			 PC 32 8 0.44 25 12 0.34 0.78 
			 Other benefits 83 22 0.09 116 54 0.12 0.2 
			 Total 384 — — 215 — — — 
			  Note: 1. Total Overpayments recorded; £ 599 million. 2. Values are rounded to nearest million—unless less than £1 million. 3. The figures given in this answer are actual values of official error and customer error detected and recorded by the Department. The Department also publishes estimates of overpayments in the Resource Account and in National Statistics publications. These are based on detailed examination of a random sample of benefit claims and are an estimate of all error, whether it was detected by normal Departmental processes or not. The differences in definition mean that the two sets of figures are not comparable. 4. Pension Credit was introduced from 6 October 2003, and prior to that, payments would have been made as Income Support. 
		
	
	
		
			  Amounts recovered by DWP broken down by benefit 
			  Recoveries £ million 
			   2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			 IS 83.0 79.8 78.5 104.0 100.0 103.2 115.5 
			 JSA(C) 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.3 0.8 1.1 
			 JSA(IB) 8.5 7.7 9.2 17.0 12.5 15.6 15.8 
			 PC — — 1.4 2.9 2.8 20.6 30.0 
			 HB 0.9 1.7 2.2 3.3 3.2 6.6 4.0 
			 Other benefits 95.3 100.5 92.6 61.4 61.7 73.9 88.9 
			 Total 188.0 190.0 184.2 188.8 180.4 220.7 255.3

Housing: Valuation

Bob Neill: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the Answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 7 May 2008,  Official Report, column 913W, on housing: valuation, how many localities there are on average in each individual billing authority.

Jane Kennedy: There are approximately 10,000 localities covering all the 354 billing authorities in England. Therefore the average number of localities in each billing authority is approximately 28.

Fairtrade Initiative

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 19 February 2008 , Official Report, columns 567-8W, on the Fair Trade initiative, how much his Department spent on refreshments for official departmental meetings and engagements in each of the last three financial years; and what percentage of this expenditure was on Fair Trade products.

Derek Twigg: Expenditure for hospitality and entertainment is published in the MOD Annual Report and Accounts, a copy of which is available in the Library of the House.
	The MOD Annual Report and Accounts 2007-08 are expected to be laid before the House in July.
	Information on the use of Fairtrade products is not recorded centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost .

South Asia: Childbirth

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what records he holds on the changes in percentage of skilled birth attendants assisting in births since 2000 in the South Asia region.

Douglas Alexander: The increase in the proportion of births attended by skilled attendants in South Asian countries is as follows:
	
		
			  Skilled birth attendant rates 
			   Percentage 
			  India  
			 1998-99 43 
			 2005-06 47 
			   
			  Bangladesh  
			 1999-2000 12 
			 2006 20 
			   
			  Pakistan  
			 1990-91 19 
			 2005-06 54 
			   
			  Nepal  
			 2001 11 
			 2006 19 
			  Source:  Demographic Health Surveys in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal; National Family Health Survey in India; and WHO estimates